The Myth of Matriarchy in the Narratives of Separated Fathers' Associations and Their Influence on the Law

The theory of matriarchy as an alternative social model to patriarchy dates back to the eighteenth century and has been taken up and rejected several times in its history. However, the advent of social media - and social bots in particular - has led to its mass dissemination. The protagonists of this diffusion are the activists of the so-called "militant" associations of separated fathers. These associations were created in the 1970s in response to the feminist movements and the legal reforms of the time: the introduction of divorce, the legitimization of abortion and the contraceptive pill, the renewal of family law in terms of the equality of spouses and their role as parents. The original associative model originated in the United States, quickly spread to Europe and is now present in all the Western countries analyzed, with almost identical communication and action strategies. We owe them the transformation into myth of the narrative of the establishment of matriarchy in Western societies through the law. For decades, the accusation of feminist discrimination has been used to discredit political activity in support of gender equality, to boycott the drafting of laws to address violence against women, and to delegitimize and guide judicial practice. Egalitarian rhetoric masking the macho credo, the production and dissemination of pseudo-scientific studies and the concealment of real data through the dissemination of impressive individual cases are the propaganda and lobbying tools used by these associations. he advent of social media and recommendation algorithms has fueled these narratives, consolidating them within a post-truth framework.This is how the myth of a matriarchal family law has spread, with similar trajectories in different Western legal jurisdictions. The study begins with an analysis of the associations of separated fathers, distinguishing between institutional and militant (according to their strategies) arguments and objectives. Since the distortion of the legislative and judicial process is due to militant activism, the analysis focuses on this to identify its primary origin in the relational and social dynamics between men and women. Arguments and proposals (shared parental responsibility, shared residence) based on the assumption of matriarchy are confronted with data from legal practice and recent studies. Without any scientific basis or empirical evidence, the assumption of the matriarchal character of contemporary jurisdictions pollutes the political debate and social perceptions by reversing and manipulating the reality of parental relationships and maternal and paternal roles within the family. Consequently, an analysis of the reactions of legal systems to the accusations and pressure they are subjected to by such associations becomes important to detect future trajectories and urgent corrective interventions. The author concludes by reiterating that children are both witnesses and victims of gender conflicts within the family and that in most of the contexts analyzed, the political and legal debate is conducted from an adult-centered perspective